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Lecture, concert planned on Son Jarocho

by Staff

Nov. 11, 2008 1 p.m.

A lecture on a re-emerging genre of music from Mexico and a concert by one of the most renowned groups performing this music today are set for Thursday and Friday, Nov. 13-14. Both events are part of Latino Heritage Month on campus.

At 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Rafael Figueroa Hernández of the Universidad de Veracruz in Mexico will speak on "Politics, Music and History of Son Jarocho" in 219 Burr Hall. Son Jarocho is the genre of the music from Veracruz -- Mexico's gulf coast. Its most famous example is "La Bamba," the piece notably sung by Ritchie Valens in the 1950s.

Hernández will explain the history of son as a main competitor for the anthem of Mexican identity, mariachi.

At 9 p.m. Friday, Son Candela will perform in the Rockefeller College Common Room. The group is composed of college-aged students as well as one of the old masters of the son tradition: Don Fallo Figueroa. The concert will include performances by a professional dancer.

The events are sponsored by the Program in Latin American Studies, the Association of Latino Princeton Alumni, Ballet Folklórico de Princeton, the Davis International Center, the Lewis Center for the Arts, the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students, the Department of Physics, Rockefeller College and the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Cultures.